


Empty Promises

by goldenforestprince



Category: TOLKIEN J. R. R. - Works & Related Fandoms, The Hobbit (Jackson Movies), The Hobbit - All Media Types, The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Animal Death, Archery, BAMF Tauriel, Battle of Five Armies, Big Brother Fíli, Bows & Arrows, Character Death, Crying, Death, F/M, Fíli Lives, Goblins, Heavy Angst, Herbalism, Kíli-centric, Love, One Shot, Orcs, Poison, Poisoning, Post-Battle of Five Armies, Swordfighting, Swords, War
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-20
Updated: 2016-01-20
Packaged: 2018-05-15 02:37:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,444
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5768074
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/goldenforestprince/pseuds/goldenforestprince
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>During the Battle of the Five Armies, Kíli tries his best to protect his love.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Empty Promises

They were stationed uphill, but that didn’t mean they had any advantage aside from the archers. They were outnumbered five to one, and the archers were doing the best they could to thin the ranks marching towards them while their horsemen’s steeds pawed impatiently, waiting to speed through the grass.

Kili glanced downhill to Tauriel, astride a tall chestnut stallion donned in beautiful golden armor just as detailed as her own. His chest tightened, waiting for the horn to sound, as he picked off the slowly growing soldiers. He was one of the more skilled archers of their ranks, and was able to aim true to their exposed throats while other arrows flitted harmlessly off of shields or breastplates. He gritted his teeth, infuriated that their leaders hadn’t trained better men. People’s lives were at stake, _her_ life was at stake, and it was up to them to make sure as many men and women came home as possible. He would see to that.

The horn sounded, booming amongst the shouts, and the horses charged. Kili whipped around to stare at Thorin, shocked, and saw that Thranduil had done the same. The archers had barely made a dent in the orcish army, and had enough arrows left to take out many more before they would run in wielding swords and axes instead. Sending the cavalry this early was madness; the remaining arrows were just as likely to be buried into a horse’s flank than an orc's head, if not moreso due to their size.

But the horn sounded, and the horses flew forwards in neat ranks, unheeding of the final flurry of arrows before more archers turning in confusion as Kili had. This was not part of what they had planned, and it was as likely to turn to chaos as the victory they had hoped for.

Kili refused to notch another arrow, staring in horror at the scene before him. The other archers were not as hesitant, and were hardly trying to aim at the further ranks, allowing the winds to carry the arrows where they pleased. Kili scowled at the scene before him, men falling like stones, dead where they fell. He knew elvish hatred ran deep, but this was too much for him to bear, and he had long since lost sight of Tauriel.

He threw his bow around his shoulder, and whirled and leaped onto an unsuspecting gray ram, which reared at the sudden weight. Kili held tight to the horns, urging the beast forward. With ease, it navigated down the mountainside and into the fray, butting anyone unfortunate enough to be in front of it’s horns or under its hooves.

In the close quarters of the battle, he drew his swords in favor of the bow, though his fingers itched to reach back and grab it, as much out of habit as comfort. He preferred to be much further away from combat, the safety in distance giving him the ease to let the arrows fly. Here in the middle of it all, his swords kept him safe, but the threat of injury was not something he relished. It had taken many years for him to gain respect for swordsmen as well as archers, which came in the form of a deft takedown from a training session with Dwalin, when he had decided that maybe swordsmen were not quite as brutish and unskilled as he had originally thought.

Around him was chaos. Men and horses screamed as they died, and the pitiful keening wail of goblins sliced through the air as well. Kili tore through the madness, searching for a stream of auburn locks. It was then that he saw a group of orcs circling a golden blur, being felled as quickly as they arrived. He had to fight back a smile. Of course it was her; even other elves had trouble matching her prowess.

He lifted his swords once more, hacking through heads and shoulders and spines, grateful for the power the beast beneath him held as the gray beast shoved aside bodies on its way towards her. Orcs and goblins alike were tossed aside like dolls as the ram threw its head from side to side.

It was only when the group of orcs was a mountain of grey flesh and black blood that Tauriel noticed him. “Well,” she panted, “Good of you to show up.”

Kili grinned, glad to have her beside him in battle, and ecstatic to be there to defend her in turn. “Couldn’t let you have all the kills, now could I?”

His laugh was cut short by her eyes widening, He looked down to see a black, glistening arrow sticking out from her stomach. He nearly heaved at the sight. _Oh. Oh no, no, no._ He was all too familiar with the substance, and he knew there was no way he could get her out of the fray in time to get her to the medical tents. He frantically jumped off the ram, letting it defend him as best it could, and was at her side in an instant.

“Tauriel!” he screamed, shaking hands grasping desperately as her too-pale face. She managed to hold in most of the tears which brimmed and fell from her emerald eyes until they met his earthen ones. She clutched her stomach weakly, the toxins already winding their way into her system. She was far from delicate, but she was not made to withstand poisons of the earth like he was. He had barely made it when he had dealt with a poison arrow of his own, and it was only with her help. He needed kingsfoil, but he couldn’t leave her side. He refused to consider that she might not make it.

“Tauriel,” his breath was ragged, he knew it wouldn’t sound real. He brushed the hair out of her face, trying to ignore how her beautiful features were contorted in agony. Oh, how he wished he could take the pain away. “Tauriel, _meleth_ , listen to me. You’re going to be fine, we’re going to get out of here. Uncle Thorin will find us and lead us out of the battle, and I’ll get a mountain of kingsfoil if I need to, just like you did for me. You’re going to make it, I promise.”

Her eyes met his, but they were filled with fear. They both knew she wouldn’t be going anywhere, and her strength was fading by the second. Soon enough, her arms fell limply by her side, and Kili had to lean her back against the stone behind her to keep her fading eyes aimed at him.

He repeated as many promises as he could think of, his mind working to create their perfect future. They would leave the battle, move to the Greenwood, and have beautiful children of their own. Their daughter would have his curls and her grassy eyes, and their son would be a fighter just like his mother. They would live on a hillside, and he would bring home fresh game, and she would-

“Kili,” she breathed, her voice barely audible above the clanging of weapons against armor. “I cannot hold on much longer. It hurts, my love. I need you to leave, to protect your brother and uncle. I have died helping your cause, and I could have asked for no greater honor. Now go, my love, and live. _Amrâlimê_.”

“No, I won’t leave leave you!” he cried, but her beautiful eyes that shone like the forest had already closed. All the air in his lungs left him at once, half a scream and half a sob that wracked his chest so violently he swore his heart had ripped in two. His world was over. His soul had died with her, the only one he had ever loved. He held her lifeless form close, fingers combing through her auburn tresses. Sobs shook him, and his eyes squeezed shut, refusing to acknowledge a world where she didn’t exist.

When the blade finally descended on him, he would have been thankful. He would have wanted nothing more than to cease existing, and his wish was granted soon enough. Even in death, he held her close, arms as tight around her as if he were still alive. After the battle, his brother’s heart broke upon seeing his little brother dead, but Fili knew that there was no other fate that Kili would have wanted. He had died with his love, a great gift in a time of sorrow and grief. In the end, they were buried together, on a green hillside at the edge of the Greenwood, overlooking the waves of Dale.

**Author's Note:**

> Have an idea for a fic you want me to write? Let me know in the comments! <3


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